In the 23rd century, I imagine they wouldn't be glass.
AI, deep learning computer or Pre-TOS basic ship's computer?
- Thread starter jefferiestubes8
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In the 23rd century, I imagine they wouldn't be glass.
Mil spec Starfleet tech could be years behind the most advanced civilian gear. A good point was made about antiquated tech not being susceptible to enemy software. Starfleet could have taken decades to merge each planet's tech and make it work together. After that slow advancement til we see the 1701 consoles in the Cage.
It's one thing to say the design should be refreshed away from 60s fashion and style, but the idea that contemporary tech has surpassed or obsoleted it is hogwash.
I think this thread may need a quick reminder of what the TOS computer was, as some people seem to have a strange idea that it was more primitive than a Commodore 64: It was an AI capable of reason. On multiple occasions they relied on it to analyse events and propose a theory. It was also a reliable lie detector. And once, when someone used a voice modifier to be completely indistinguishable from Kirk by ear, the computer was able to instantly determine with 98% certainty that it wasn't him, while our voice recognition technology still struggles to tell naturally different voices apart.
I don't see how Discovery is at all restricted by the template TOS provides. The only technology I see them needing to "add" to the computer is a more natural voice, but even that would not contradict TOS. There's no need to dance around the issue with "prototypes" or whatever... there is no issue to begin with.
I think this thread may need a quick reminder of what the TOS computer was, as some people seem to have a strange idea that it was more primitive than a Commodore 64: It was an AI capable of reason. On multiple occasions they relied on it to analyse events and propose a theory. It was also a reliable lie detector. And once, when someone used a voice modifier to be completely indistinguishable from Kirk by ear, the computer was able to instantly determine with 98% certainty that it wasn't him, while our voice recognition technology still struggles to tell naturally different voices apart.
I don't see how Discovery is at all restricted by the template TOS provides. The only technology I see them needing to "add" to the computer is a more natural voice, but even that would not contradict TOS. There's no need to dance around the issue with "prototypes" or whatever... there is no issue to begin with.
"Do you have any idea how many people the Romulans killed because they hacked our computers? I'm not going to have anything beyond Windows Vista on this ship!"
It was a mix-mash. For every instance you cite above about how advanced the computer was, we can cite instances of how primitive it was. This was a super advanced computer that couldn't figure out how to make flavored ice cream unless a data card was inserted. Further, those data cards were so limited in capacity that it took multiple cards for multiple flavors. On the other hand, one card held an entire anatomy file, so, go figure.
This was an advanced AI that could be tripped up into failing at chess because someone reprogrammed it in order to hide and alter a video recording.
This was an advanced AI that locked up because it couldn't compute pi to the last digit. Where was the safeguard to prevent such a lock up?
This was an advanced AI that couldn't do much of anything without having data cards inserted. And it's networking capability was lacking.
I think it more likely that those were some sort of identity card or meal card to identify you for the system, and not something specific to each favor of ice cream. It makes no sense that Christine would know in advance what each child would want and bring the appropreate cards.
The exchange of cards with the child who wanted a elaborate combination was simply Christine being comfortable around childern and playing with him, He probably could have gotten his special order with his original card.
The instruction came from the ship's first officer, why have a "safeguard" to prevent the computer from following any instruction from him?
I forgot about that one. That is sone profoundly stupid stuff right there. Irrational numbers show up all the time. A system that can't handle them is going to crash hard on a regular basis. Especially one intended to process raw sensor data.
Demanding the final digit of pi on any computer today (or then) will either get you the greatest precision the system is configured to calculate or the correct answer of "pi is an irrational number".
/compscirant
Also, that nasally voice. Nobody in 2016, never mind 2260, is going to put up with that for long.
Vista? From what I remembered XP was way more user friendly."Do you have any idea how many people the Romulans killed because they hacked our computers? I'm not going to have anything beyond Windows Vista on this ship!"
As I mentioned before, Star Trek deliberately avoided real-world computing terms to discourage direct comparison. And with the type of tasks their computers perform, I don't see that we have any common point of reference to claim they are "primitive". If you think today's computers have surpassed these limitations, I'm curious what examples you're thinking of.
- How many flavors of ice cream can your computer produce? Mine seems to be limited to zero.
- How many light-years does our interstellar internet cover so far?
- Which SIM card unlocks subspace?
- Which computers currently on the market possess a strong enough willpower to resist reprogramming? Personally, I've not yet had an "I'm sorry, Dave" moment in all my years of programming.
- For that matter, which computers will refuse to be programmed to perform an infinite computation? Hang on, let me try:
Link to run computation
Hmm, the site says "Time limit exceeded". I'm also running it on my system, though. I'll let you know when it stops according to its own will.
(BTW, of course there would be safeguards, but in this instance Spock obviously overrode them deliberately.)
Discovery could easily rehash this stuff (tweaking the presentation a bit) because the basic premise is still valid. They could also not have any of this and there still wouldn't be an issue, because these aren't exactly hard limitations. I mean, just because one ship's security allows certain commands doesn't mean another can't block them, or because data is pulled from a card in one case doesn't mean it can't be downloaded over space in another, or vice versa.
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Normally no computer would try to compute Pi to an infinite number of digits, but maybe Spock had enough control to use an override, or installed a backdoor in the past to allow it to occur?
Naturally someone on the ship should have full computer control. Who better than Spock, the certified "A-7 computer expert"?